Gillette's Castle and Grandma Kris' Birthday!

In the month of September, Robb had to go out of town for work. My mom and Rich were planning on coming for a visit the week after he got home. I was feeling a little overwhelmed with work, kids, and all the stuff I have going on. Thinking about Robb being gone made me feel even more overwhelmed. So, I called my mom and asked if she wouldn't mind coming out a week earlier to help me out. She agreed and we were able to fly her out early. This was such a huge relief to me. It was so nice having my mom here to help me with the kids. She is a fun woman to have around!!! Rich came out the week they had originally planned so we got to spend some time with him, too!

Here is Kate with Grandma Kris.

Kate
Josh and Jake also love having grandma around!

While they were here, we got to celebrate my mom's birthday. As we all know, she is a huge crochet fanatic. She is really talented in that arena and always welcomes more yarn and supplies. So, naturally, we got her some yarn and fabrics for her birthday!

Here she is all excited about her gift:

The kids are being silly and having fun celebrating grandma's birthday.

Jake looking exceptionally silly.

Kate is a quick learner when it comes to silliness!

For their visit, mom and Rich wanted to take a tour of Gillette's castle. It located in East Haddam, Connecticut and was originally a private residence of William Gillette. Gillette was an American actor who was made famous for his role as Sherlock Holmes on stage. He designed the castle and came up with a lot of interesting ideas on how to make things work in the castle. It was fun to see the inside and to be able to go to a "real" castle. Here are some of the things we saw:

A sign outside the castle.
The Castle

Another view. How cool is that?

Jake in front of the castle.
Josh and Jake about to go in for the tour. Jake and Kate

This is what covered some of the walls. It's a burlap type of material that's been painted.
The wooden contraption is a light switch.

These are switches on the walls of other rooms.

Robb got a little artsy with some of his camera shots.
Here are some cool shots he took:

Along the walkway up to the castle there was a rock wall. It was beautifully put together. The kids enjoyed walking and climbing on it.

Josh and Jake

Climbing on the wall

Jake

Kate

Josh

Kate and I taking a breather.

A new friend joining us on our walk.

The kids...

All of us minus one:
Rich, my mom, Jake, me, Robb, and Josh
(Kate took this picture. Not to bad for a 3 year old!)

We had a great time with my mom and Rich. We were so happy they could come for a visit. I sure hope they can come again soon!